Nothing is more vital to the Christian life than prayer.
Satan seeks to hinder the prayer life of the believer by every means possible.
Knowing Satan’s approach to the life of prayer, the Apostle Paul wrote: “Continuing steadfast in prayer, watching therein with thanksgiving” (Col 4:2)
As I read the first four words I ask myself-Why is it so difficult to maintain a zest for prayer? I then turned to Moffatt’s translation and read: “Maintain your zeal for prayer through thanksgiving.” Maybe this is the secret of a deep prayer life. The thankful soul will be a praying soul.
I have discovered when prayer is difficult, to begin a hymn of praise and thanksgiving helps.
Prayer is essential to the ongoing of the Kingdom of God. Therefore we must pray. Prayer is necessary for the soul to keep in line with God’s will. Therefore keep praying.
Prayer is the soul opening itself to the voice of God. It is the human spirit seeking to lose itself in the will of the Divine Spirit.
We must be motivated in our prayer life by our passion—to know God and fellowship with Him. To pray for a manifestation of the power of God without earnestly desiring God’s presence Is dangerous and selfish. We should pray for hearts that thirst for God, that seek constantly His honor, His glorification.
Prayer is a cleansing force. Living victoriously requires diligence and alertness. Prayer is a holy stimulant to holy living.
Unbelief, complacency, egoism, worldliness, littleness are foes against which the soul must wage constant warfare. The spirit of God in answer to sincere prayer can cleanse all these hideous traits away.
Prayer is a creative force. It will create a tender spirit—an inflexible opposition to sin but a compassionate attitude toward the sinner. It will create a spirit of sacrifice—a desire to spend and be spent for Christ. Prayer is a conquering force.
John Randolph wrote: “I believe I should have been swept by the flood of French infidelity if it had not been for one thing—the remembrance of the time when my sainted mother used to make me kneel by her side taking my little hand in hers and cause me to repeat the Lord’s prayer.
“They who have steeped their souls in prayer can ever anguish calmly bear.”
John R. Mott, the great Christian of the other generation, said: “Prayer is the greatest force that we can wield. It is the greatest talent God has given us. There is a democracy in this matter. We may differ among ourselves as to our wealth, as to our social position, as to our educational equipment, as to our native ability, as to our inherent characteristics, but in the matter of exercising the greatest force that is at work in the world today we are on the same footing.”
At all hazards culture your prayer life. You know not what you may face of burdens, of chastisement, of affliction, of sorrows, but if you are schooled in the art of prayer, you may take hold of the great arm of god and Draw strength and courage and fortitude and victory from His might.
--Oliver G. Wilson
No comments:
Post a Comment